Acid Jazz

Drummer Idris Muhammad's first two albums as a leader (Black Rhythm Revolution! and Peace and Rhythm) are reissued in full on this single CD. The former set has a few worthy tracks (including Muhammad's colorful feature "Soulful Dreams"); the latter recording…has a pair of soul vocals and some R&B material. Trumpeter Virgil Jones and saxophonist Clarence Thomas get in their spots, and the music is danceable.

Sonny Phillips is a decent, if derivative organist who recorded three albums for Prestige from 1969-70 and a pair for Muse in the mid-1970s. This 1997 CD reissue has all of the music from Sure 'Nuff and Black on Black, a couple of fine soul-jazz recordings. The earlier set is a quintet/sextet set with tenor saxophonist Houston Person, guitarist Joe "Boogaloo" Jones, electric bassist Bob Bushnell, drummer Bernard Purdie and sometimes trumpeter Virgil Jones. The later date features Phillips with tenor saxophonist Rusty Bryant, guitarist Melvin Sparks, electric bassist Jimmy Lewis and drummer Bernard Purdie. The music is blues- and groove-oriented, with "Oleo" being one of the few departures. Person and Bryant in particular have fine solos, while Phillips' chugging organ is appealing. This is his definitive set.

This CD reissues the complete contents of two former Lp's by saxophonist Sonny Stitt: Turn It On and Black Vibrations. These are rather unusual entries in Stitt's huge discography in that Sonny often sounds like a guest performer on his own sessions rather than the leader. During the earlier date, Stitt uses an electrical device (a Varitone) on his tenor that waters down his tone a bit. ~ AllMusic

The title of this compilation tries to make Montgomery viable for a younger generation, but it's not exactly "acid jazz." Rather, it's an anthology of some of Montgomery's better pop- and soul-oriented material from the mid-'60s. The 16 tracks show Montgomery in both orchestral and small combo settings, a few cuts taken from his collaborations with Jimmy Smith. Purists have long disdained this phase of Montgomery's career. But those who don't measure work by how straight-ahead it is will find much to enjoy here, in either the cuts with Oliver Nelson's orchestra, or the less elaborate sessions with the likes of Smith, Grady Tate, Ron Carter, and Ray Barretto.

In apparent response to the sampling of old Latin jazz records by hip-hop artists, Verve raided its Cal Tjader archive to come up with this fiercely grooving collection drawn from nine of his Verve albums. For all of producer Creed Taylor's '60s penchant for fashioning two- to four-minute cuts aimed at airplay, he allowed Tjader's groups considerable room to stretch out on several of the tracks included here, particularly on the live "Los Bandidos" and the hypnotic collaboration with pianist Eddie Palmieri, "Picadillo." More importantly, Tjader's records with Taylor were more varied in texture than his earlier discs, venturing now and then from his solid Afro-Cuban base into Brazilian rhythms, soul, big-band backings, and '60s pop touches…